The present invention relates to aeroponics and the growth and development of plants in a gaseous environment into which a liquid nutrient solution is introduced.
Prior to the expansion of aeroponic devices for the growth and development of plants, people experimented with hydroponics, which is a method of growing plants using mineral nutrient liquid solutions instead of soil. Hydroponics is said to provide healthier plants that grow faster than those grown in soil. Although in hydroponics plants are grown in the absence of soil, the roots are maintained in a liquid environment. Consequently, one of the reasons hydroponics is not widely accepted is because the lack of adequate ventilation at the roots from the continuous presence of water is a major cause of root disease.
To solve this problem, people turned to aeroponics. As generally known, aeroponics is the process of growing plants in an air or mist environment without the use of soil or an aggregate medium. One of the reasons why aeroponics has been in such high demand is because of the proliferation of disease, such as Fussarium, Boytrytis, Sclerotium, Verticilium and Rhizoctonia, among plants that are cultivated in soil and through hydroponics. Other difficulties that arise in cultivating plants grown in soil are the demand for specialized nutrients to enhance growth, and, more importantly, the need for land.
Therefore what is needed is an apparatus that more efficiently and effectively executes aeroponic principals in a given volume.
The present invention will be more fully understood and appreciated from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the drawings.